A typical wireless communication system includes a number of base stations each configured to provide one or more respective wireless coverage areas in which to serve wireless communication devices (WCDs) such as cell phones, wirelessly-equipped personal computers or tablets, tracking devices, embedded wireless communication modules, or other devices equipped with wireless communication functionality (whether or not operated by a human user). Each base station is then typically coupled with supporting network infrastructure that provides connectivity with transport networks such as the public switched telephone network (PSTN) and/or the Internet. That way, when a WCD is positioned within a coverage area of any base station, the WCD may be served by the base station and may thereby engage in communications via the base station with other entities on the transport networks and/or with other WCDs served by the base station.
As many WCDs are mobile, it has become standard practice to provide location-based services keyed to WCD location. Examples of such services take various forms, including, without limitation, providing navigation guidance and information about points of interest, tracking packages or other objects, locating lost or stolen WCDs, and providing emergency response service (e.g., 911 call routing and dispatching of emergency personnel). To facilitate providing location-based services keyed to the location of a WCD, a location-based service provider (LBSP) learns the location of the WCD and then takes action (e.g., providing information, dispatching assistance, etc.) based on that location.
In practice, an LBSP could learn the location of a WCD in various ways. For example, the LBSP could receive from the WCD itself a report of the WCD's location. As another example, when the WCD is being served by a wireless communication system, the LBSP could receive from a location-determination platform associated with that system a report of the WCD's location as determined by the platform.
Further, in these or other examples, the WCD's location could be determined and reported with varying levels of granularity. For instance, the WCD's location could be determined and reported with very high granularity based on Global Positioning System (GPS) satellite signals. As another example, the WCD's location could be determined and reported with somewhat less granularity through triangulation (e.g., advanced forward link trilateration) established based on signal-delay or signal-strength between the WCD from three or more base stations at known locations. And as still another example, the WCD's location could be determined and reported simply as a location of coverage of a base station serving the WCD, such as a centroid of the base station's coverage area in which the WCD is operating. Which of these representations of the WCD's location is used in a given situation may depend on the type of location-based service to be provided and on various other factors (such as whether GPS signals are available, whether base station signals are available, and so forth).